New HDDs From Hitachi GST for HD Streaming

Hitachi Global Storage Technologies rolled out the red carpet for the newest members of its CinemaStar family of 3.5-inch hard disk drives (HDD). Based on 500GB per platter technology, the new Hitachi CinemaStar product line-up consists of the 7200 RPM, 1TB CinemaStar 7K1000.C and its 1TB, CinemaStar 5K1000 CoolSpin companion.

Both product families are built to handle the most demanding high definition (HD) video streams and offer reliable performance, large capacity, quiet operation, advanced AV features, and low power and temperatures that help manufacturers meet design, price and performance objectives for their consumer electronics devices. Along with these benefits, these 1TB performers are able to store nearly 250 hours of MPEG-41 HD video and can handle multiple streams of video simultaneously, making the CinemaStar 7K1000.C and the CinemaStar 5K1000 the perfect drives for consumer electronics applications such as HD DVRs, DVD/HDD recorders, DVR-enabled TVs, media centers, and video surveillance systems.

Now with an expanded capacity range of 160GB to 1TB, the new CinemaStar 5K1000 family features innovative Hitachi CoolSpin Technology, which relies on motor speed optimization to provide a unique balance of performance, power utilization and acoustics. By tuning the motor to make the drive spin slower, thereby reducing harmonic resonance, the CinemaStar 5K1000 is nearly silent at 2.4 bels during operation, draws 3.3 watts or less idle power and generates less heat, which are all critical factors when designing environmentally friendly digital video solutions.

“With the market for hard drive-enabled DVRs and PVRs growing at a significant rate, we are experiencing increasing demand for our CinemaStar products,” said Brendan Collins, Vice President of Marketing, Hitachi GST. “The new crop of HDTVs with built-in DVRs is one example of what’s fueling market growth. With our advanced AV features, and years of reliable hard drive design and OEM integration experience, we continue to work closely with large global manufacturers who are selling a new generation of TVs with integrated hard drives.”

Advanced AV Features Take the Leading Role
Both drives feature patented and innovative Hitachi SmoothStream Technology, which delivers an integrated set of features and functions that enable CinemaStar drives to perform optimally in AV applications. For example, SmoothStream tunes the drive response to capture video data streams on a command by command basis, allowing integrators to mix different AV and IT applications on the same platform. CinemaStar drives represent Hitachi’s fourth generation SmoothStream implementation.

In addition to SmoothStream, the new CinemaStar family integrates outstanding reliability and performance features that are standard on all Hitachi hard drives, plus a suite of specific AV optimized features that help manufacturers and system integrators develop next-generation digital video and multimedia solutions.

Key features include:

SMART command transport to optimize the drive settings for best video streaming performance
Advanced auto power management with multiple power mode options so that performance requirements can be achieved using the lowest possible energy expenditure
Expanded temperature range of 0-70oC (CinemaStar 5K1000) and 0-65oC (CinemaStar 7K1000) in operating mode to enable fan-free, quiet DVR designs, which is important for drives that often ‘live’ in a consumer’s bedroom
Intelligent idle time functions that maintain customer data signal quality for reliable long-term storage
Advanced drive mechanics, resulting in a drive rating of 1.2 million hours MTBF, for the grueling 24×7 operation that is commonplace among music- and movie-loving consumers
Hitachi patented load/unload ramp mechanism that helps prevent disk wear and protects the disk during non-operation
Thermal fly-height control for enhanced drive reliability during lengthy video encoding/decoding sessions; especially relevant today when HD movies can reach more than three hours in length

Availability
Hitting the full range of consumer electronics capacity sweet spots (160GB to 1TB), the CinemaStar 7K1000.C and 5K1000 will be available in volume in the fourth quarter of calendar 2009.